Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Qatar's prime minister Friday ahead of a visit to Israel this weekend, showing how the Trump administration is trying to balance relations between key Middle East allies days after Israel targeted Hamas leaders in a strike on Doha.

The president of Nepal on Friday appointed former Supreme Court Chief Justice Sushila Karki as interim prime minister and the first woman to head the Himalayan nation's government following fiery protests that caused the collapse of the previous administration.

A veteran zookeeper at the Safari World Open Zoo in Bangkok died this week after being attacked by five lions.

The United States rejected as destabilizing a Chinese government bid to gain control over a disputed South China Sea reef by setting up a nature preserve, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Friday.

NATO will strengthen air defense operations along its eastern flank in response to Russia sending more than a dozen drones into Polish airspace on Wednesday, which prompted the alliance to scramble jet fighters to shoot them down.

A second B-21 Raider test aircraft arrived at Edwards Air Force Base in California on Thursday, military officials said, as the Pentagon moves quickly with its testing of the advanced nuclear-capable bombers.

A combination of public shock at the treatment of South Korean workers in a Georgia immigration raid, legal measures taken by former sex workers for U.S. troops in Korea and uneven U.S. tariffs on Korean and Japanese autos is generating concern about a possible resurrection of mass anti-Americanism.

The United Arab Emirates summoned Israel's envoy in the country on Friday to condemn Israel's attack on Hamas leadership in Qatar, increasing pressure on the country as Qatar's top diplomat visits Washington.

As they get to know their new Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu, a loyal ally of President Emmanuel Macron who had been remarkably low-key before taking one of the top jobs in the land, the French are also discovering that he has a somewhat unusual habit: He likes to butt heads.

Albania's prime minister on Friday tapped an Artificial Intelligence-generated 'minister' to tackle corruption in his new Cabinet, a project launched with the help of Microsoft.

Amnesty International on Friday called for a public trial of a South Sudanese opposition figure facing treason and other criminal charges, in a case that some worry could deepen political tensions in the east African country.

The United Nations is trying to help move displaced Syrians sheltering in schools in a southwestern province that was engulfed in sectarian clashes this summer to alternative housing ahead of the start of the new school year, a U.N. official said Friday.

Belarus forcibly deported political prisoners released in a U.S.-led deal, opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya said Friday.

Japan's Emperor Naruhito and his family paid their respects Friday to the victims of the atomic bombing 80 years ago of the city of Nagasaki.

Tropical Storm Mario formed Friday off the Pacific coast of Mexico and was expected to bring wind, rain and possible flash flooding, forecasters said.

France said it's deploying fighter jets to Poland and Britain announced fresh sanctions on Russia's oil revenues and war machine Friday as European countries took steps to deter Moscow's aggression after an incursion by Russian drones into Polish territory.

Floodwaters that had threatened a major town in eastern Punjab province began to recede Friday, sparing its 700,000 residents, but rising waters swamped villages near two nearby cities, forcing panicked evacuations, Pakistani officials said.

Russia's central bank cut its benchmark interest rate Friday by one percentage point to 17%, a step that could support the economy as growth slows and spending on the war against Ukraine increases the budget deficit.

Polish officials insisted Friday that a drone incursion into its territory was an intentional provocation by Russia and strongly rejected suggestions made by President Trump the day before that it could have been a mistake.

Britain's Prince Harry has arrived in Ukraine for a surprise visit in support of wounded service members.